WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – Saturday, June 16, 2012 – Propelled by goals from Jeff Kyei and Maksym Kowal, the Des Moines Menace topped Colorado Select, 2-0, tonight at Valley Stadium.The exhibition match provided Menace head coach Laurie Calloway a chance to rest his starters in preparation for the Premier Development League season’s home stretch. The Menace’s non-starters made the most of their playing time.

“It was a good game for us, trying to show we want to play,” said Kyei. “It was nice to score in front of the home crowd.”

In the 37th minute, Kyei cleaned up the rebound from Matt LaGrassa’s beamer, which was deflected by Colorado goalkeeper Michael Sharidan. It was Kyei’s second goal of the season, following his equalizer in a 2-2 draw at WSA Winnipeg on June 2.

“We were waiting to get that goal,” Kyei said. “We were working and working for that.”

Kowal converted a penalty kick in the 56th minute to extend the lead. A combination with Kasy Kiarash put Kowal into the penalty area, where he was clipped from behind.

It was Kowal’s first goal since finding the net less than six minutes into the season opener.

“For me, it was just a little bit of relief,” said Kowal, who wore the captain's band tonight. “A confident boost for me, and a confidence boost for the team.”

The Menace has lost only one match since May 9. The team entered the day in first place in the Heartland Division standings with a record of 5-3-2. Des Moines has gone 5-1-1 to recover from a slow start.

“Hopefully we can continue playing well,” Kowal said. “We need to win every game the rest of the way.”

Looming large is a Friday-Saturday doubleheader at arch-rival Thunder Bay next weekend. With less than a month left in the regular season, only six PDL games remain for the Menace. The division’s top two teams advance to the playoffs.

MR. B MAN of the MATCH goes to: Kyei for the second time this season. The native of Tubingen, Germany prepares for his first season at California University of Pennsylvania, the alma mater of Menace legend Tomas Boltnar.

UP NEXT: The Menace returns to Canada for two games with the 6-1-0 Thunder Bay Chill, which reclaimed first place with a 4-0 win at WSA Winnipeg tonight. Chapples Park is the site of the Friday and Saturday matches, which both start at 6:30 p.m. CDT.

Opening a stretch of three straight home weekends to conclude the season, Des Moines hosts Springfield on June 30. The 7:30 p.m. match at Valley Stadium is presented by Powerade and Vitamin Water.

ABOUT THE MENACE: The Des Moines Menace provides the highest level of soccer in Iowa. The Menace men’s side competes in the 73-team United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League (PDL). The Menace’s women’s team, in its inaugural season, is part of the five-team Women’s League Soccer. The Menace teams play their home matches in a fun, family-friendly environment at Valley Stadium in West Des Moines. The organization promotes a healthy lifestyle through its popular youth programs, including the Menace Academy (select soccer for ages 9-19), camps, clinics, Junior Menace and tournaments.